Safety device for railway-tracks.



R. E. GARLTONK: W. RYLE. SAFETY DEVICE FOR RAILWAY TRACKS.

APP'LIOATION FILED MAY 4, 1910.

Patented Feb. 21, 1911.

ATTORNEYS UNITED s'ra'rns PATENT orrrcn.

ROBERT ELLISTON CARLTON, 0F LATONIA, KENTUCKY, AND MARCUS WARLAND RYLE,

- OF BALMORHEA, TEXAS.

SAFETY DEVICE FOR RAILW'AY-TRACKS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 21, 1911.

Application filed May 1, 1910. Serial No. 559,373.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, ROBERT E. CARLTON, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Latonia, in the county of Kenton and State ofKentucky, and MARCUS JV. RYLE, a citizen of the United States, andresident of Balniorhea, in the county of Reeves and State of Texas, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Safety Devices forRailway-Tracks, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to improvements in guard rails for preventing thederailing of cars on railway tracks, and it consists in thecombinations, and constructions and arrangements of parts hereindescribed and claimed.

An object of our invention is to provide a device which may beadvantageously used at points at which there is danger of derailment,such as on curves, or upon bridges, or other structures, wherederailment would lead to the most serious consequences.

A further object of our invention is to provide electrical means fornotifying the operator if the derailment should occur and at what point.

A further object of our invention is to provide a novel form of guardrail for preventing the derailment of the train and serving to effectthe reentrance of the wheels upon their proper rails if such derailmentshould occur. This is accomplished by means of grooves made in the railsin such a manner that the flanges of the wheels are guided by thegrooves so that the wheels themselves are turned back upon the maintrack.

Further objects and advantages will appear in the followingspecification and the novel features of the device will be particularlypointed out in the appended claims.

Gur invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a plan view of the track provided with our invention. Fig. 2is a side view of a portion of the track showing the spring foractuating the switch tongue. Fig. 3 is a section along the line 33 ofFig. 1, Fig. 4 is a section along the line 44 of Fig. 1, and Fig. 5 isan enlarged section along the line :55 of Fig. 1.

In Fig. 1 we have shown a track comprising the ties 1 and the main rails2 and 3. In

a section of track, at points where derailment is liable to occur, suchas on curves, we remove the rails of the main track and insert in placethereof the rails shown in Fig. 1. In this figure it will be seen thatthere is an outer rail 4 of a curved shape which is placed between thesections of the main rail 2, being secured to the ties 1 in the ordinarymanner. Inside of the outer rail 1 is a rail 5 which is in line with themain track rails 2--2 and which is provided with pivoted switch tongues6 and 7 at the ends thereof. This rail is provided with a series ofdiagonal grooves 8. lVithin the rail 5 is a third rail or inner guardrail 9 having a curved form as indicated in the figure, the curve of therail being opposite to that of the outer guard rail 4;. The inner guardrail 9 is also provided with a series of diagonal grooves 10. Betweenthe track rail 5 and the outer rail 4: is a steel or iron spacing plate11, while a similar spacing plate 12 is placed between the rail 5 andthe inner guard rail 9.

The opposite side of the track is similarly provided with an outer guardrail 13, and the inner track rail 14 which has diagonal grooves 1%. Athird rail 15 is provided which is similar to the rail 9 and is providedwith grooves 16. The rail 14 is provided with the switch tongues 17 and18 similar to the switch tongues 6 and 7 On the outer side of each ofthe rails 41 and ,13 are secured springs 19. Each of these springs isconnected by a rod 20, which passes through the opening in the outerguard rails, with its respective switch tongue, as plainly shown in thedrawing. These springs tend to hold the switch tongues against the outerguard rails so as to form a continuous section of track between the maintrack sections 22 and 3 3. The rail sections are joined together bymeans of the fish-plates 21 and the rails are secured to the ties in theordinary manner.

From the foregoing description of the various parts of the device, theoperation thereof may be readily understood.

Ordinarily as a train passes a section of track provided with ourinvention, the wheels on one side of the train follow the track 2, 5, 2,since as before stated, the switch tongues 6 and 7 are normally held bytheir springs so as to form a continuous track. The wheels ontheoppositeside of the train would follow the rail sections v ;=8e1 l8.'7 Now, if one of thewheels should jump the track the inner or outerguard rails would prevent the train from complete derailment. Moreover,as the train proceeds,

the flanges ofthe wheels will'engage the diagonal grooves, therebytending to force the wheels back upon the track. The grooves are shownas inclined in opposite directions, so that if the tram 1s proceeding 1none (11- rection, as forinstance, from left to right, in

V r Fig. lfthefianges-on thewheels, on the left I hand side of the trainwill-engage the" grooves 8 and tend to force the wheels back upon thetracln If the-derailment is still farther to the left, the grooves ofthe rail 15 will engage the flanges of the wheels of V the/right handside of the'train and tend to force the wheels back uponthe track.Conversely, if the-derailment should be in the opposite direction, thegrooves 14;? of the rail 7 Hand grooves 10 of the rail 9 would come in'vide' the spring tongues'6,- r7 and 17, 18. As

- soon as the flanges, which engage one of the outer guard rails, reachthe spring tongue, they push it aside, and the tongue may spring backinto its position, thus leaving the apparatus in normal condition.

'We areaware that other forms of the device based upon thesameidea mightbe made, but we consider as'our own all such modifications'as fairlyfallfwithin the spirit and scope of the invention. "Weclaim'z a 1. Asafety device for railways comprising an'outer guard rail on each sideof the track, joining the main rails, an inner guard rail on each sideof the track spaced from said outer guard rail, and an intermediate maintrack sect-i011 provided with springcontrolled switch tongues normallyin engagement with said outer guard rails.

.thetrack provided with diagonal grooves,

anda central track rail between said outer V and inner guard railsprovided with diagonal grooves inclined in an opposite direction fromsaid first mentioned grooves, and spring controlled switch tongues ateach end of said central track rails.

4. A safety device for railways comprising an outer guard rail on eachside of the track, an inner guard rail on each side of the track, acentral track rail between said outer and inner guard rails, pivotedswitch tongues at the ends of said central section, springs securedtosaid outer guard rails for holding said switch tongues normally inengagement with said outer guard rails.

ROBERT ELLISTON CARLTON. MARCUS VVARLAND RYLE.

Witnesses as to the signature of R. E.

Carlton: I

W. R. ELLIs'roN, R. A. WOLKING.

Witnesses as to the signature of M. W. Rylez' GEO. F. MOKINNY,

L. J .Rnoroa.

